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Homie the Head Cleaver
With the direction of Guulreesh, Lord of Filth, the party exits his domain and arrives into a small servant’s restroom in the basement of Gael Cairn - the cliffside castle made of brilliant white stone that serves as the home of the Stuthbert family and other Glenrothian nobility. If the story told by the Serac monks is true, than Gharrah, the last dragon and ally of Maile Genero is held captive deep in the catacombs under the castle. Banking on the good name of Irving’s family, they disguise themselves as Liam’s retinue, including Grub transformed into a small pet dog. They nonchalantly make their way through the kitchens but are spotted by a guard in the hallway who tries to stop them to break the bad news that dogs aren’t allowed in the castle, but falls victim to Bundly’s sleep spell before he finished his sentence. The guard collapses, and a nearby servant girl cries out in terror, but quick thinking allows them to distract the servant and swap out the unconscious guard with a shapeshifted Grub before new guards arrive to investigate the noise. Unfortunately, Grub’s shapeshift isn’t perfect and to allay suspicions Grub (along with Greave-Bundly) are forced to head to the infirmary, while the rest of the party descend the steps. As Dirk, Irving and Connor fight their way through a guard checkpoint into the lower levels, Grub tries to bluff her way out of the situation, but unfortunately the long history of friendship, tragedy, romance, drugs and duty between the apparently very close knit guards leave him little recourse but to transform into a fly and escape. Bundly is a little too slow, and is restrained by the guard who brings the heretical magic talking shoes to the chapel to be exorcised. It’s a close call, but Bundly manages to barely slip out at the last moment and runs to catch up with the party, a cadre of guards in close pursuit. Dirk uses his immeasurable strength to twist and bar the iron grate behind them as they run down the stairs to the next level… Here, in the prisons, they stumble upon an old “friend”: Back-Alley Ambush Al, who has been captured and imprisoned. Al implores Connor to help him escape, saying that he knows these prisons well and can help them bypass the guard patrols in this area. A deal is struck, and the party + Al easily make it to the next chamber. A gruesome display of cruel machinery meets them in the torture chamber, where a hulking executioner tends to a fire, heating a brand over it’s flames. A man is trapped in the gallows, who turns out to be Chad Kane, a relative of Lynette Kane, the noblewoman they rescued from execution way back when. They free the young chap and dispatch the executioner, but Dirk feels a strange connection to the fallen man’s wicked looking battle axe. He takes the weapon and the party moves on. They arrive in the castle’s ossuary, where the walls are lined with skulls, remains, plaques, murals and offerings dedicated to the deceased nobility of Glenroth. The hall opens up into a huge, decadent chamber: the Stuthbert family tomb. Great statues of the Stuthbert lineage and ornately decorated tombs flank the central aisle that leads to a great altar dedicated to Glory Be, the deity worshipped by the Word. A massive stained glass window covers the far wall, lit from behind by roaring braziers that cast shifting and tumultuous coloured lights across the whole scene. A handful of guards and two priests, easily recognizable as high ranking members of the Word, are gathered here. The priests, dressed in pristine white robes lined with gold, rosaries and symbols of their faith, shout to the party and decry them for their sins. Before much conversation can be had, Dirk draws Grohl and charges!